Title:

Artist/Maker(s):

Culture:

German

Date:

1479

Medium:

Oil on panel

Dimensions:

79.8 x 140.2 cm (31 7/16 x 55 3/16 in.)

Inscriptions:

Painted inscription on the scroll (far left), in red and black Gothic Textualis: O virgo pverpera martires decori pijs precatibvs affecto offerri incomprehensibili Trinitati (O child-bearing virgin, noble martyrs, I desire with pious prayers to be offered to the inapprehensible Trinity) [the underlined letters are painted in red and form a chronogram (an inscription in which specific letters can also be interpreted as Roman numerals in order to encode a date, in this case 1479)]
Painted inscription on a scroll held by the Holy Spirit, center: ·I·N·R·I·

Previous Attribution(s):

Master of the Drapery Studies (German, active 15th century)

Department:

Paintings

Classification:

Paintings

Object Type:

Painting

Object Number:

2012.22

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God the Father enthroned and holding the crucified Christ with the Holy Spirit between them, dominate the composition. Together they represent the Trinity, the central doctrine of the Christian faith, in which all three are united as one. This recently discovered altarpiece was carefully designed for the kneeling donor, a cleric, and expresses his desire for penance. The donor's plea for salvation inscribed on the scroll cleverly incorporates the date "1479" in Roman numerals. Saint Stephen stands protectively over him, bearing the stones of martyrdom on his head.

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